MDP Celebrates Strong Recovery of GM, Chrysler

LANSING – The recovery of the American auto industry is in high gear, American automakers are hiring again, and Michiganders have the President and Michigan Democrats to thank for it. Today, General Motors announced a quarterly net income of $3.2 billion – tripling its amount from last year. Earlier this week, Chrysler posted a 22.5% increase of sales in April and first quarter net income of $116 million, their first quarterly profit since emerging from structured bankruptcy reorganization. This great news is in stark contrast to the situation faced by thousands of autoworkers across, their families and the communities they support just two years ago.

Every business in Wixom, Flint, Lansing and Warren, to name a few, is dependent on an economy fueled by the presence of General Motors, Chrysler, auto suppliers and the jobs they bring. Hundreds of communities just like them across the country faced the possibility that this economic engine would stall out, and Republicans fought against a plan to prevent their demise. But President Barack Obama saw the way forward, and made the tough decision to offer loan packages to General Motors and Chrysler, saving more than 1.5 million jobs across the country and creating more than 12,000 manufacturing and auto dealer jobs over the last year here in Michigan.

Michigan Democratic Party Chair Mark Brewer said “President Obama carefully weighed the options and risks of providing loan packages to General Motors and Chrysler. But in the face of calls from Republicans and pundits to sit back and let the American auto companies go bankrupt, President Obama stepped in to ensure that Chrysler and General Motors not only survived, but that they were streamlined for profits. And, today the President’s decision is paying off.”

In November of last year, General Motors’ initial public offering became the biggest in history, raising more than $20 billion. And the government has already recovered more than $23 billion of its investment in General Motors. And recently, General Motors employees were rewarded for their hard work with profit-sharing checks that averaged $4,300. Another 3,000 workers at GM Components holdings received about $3,200.